CF president is a bargain

Sunday

May 19, 2013 at 12:01 AM

A report from Florida’s chief inspector general, analyzing the compensation packages of the presidents at Florida’s 28 state colleges, showed College of Central Florida's Jim Henningsen is one of the lowest paid and most frugally compensated.

By Brad RogersEditorial Page Editor

When the trustees at the College of Central Florida hired Jim Henningsen last year as the college’s new president, it was the culmination of a lengthy national search that had the trustees gushing. A great leader. Loves engaging the students and the community. Very smart and likable guy.Turns out, he was a bargain to boot.Florida’s chief inspector general this week submitted a report to Gov. Rick Scott analyzing the compensation packages (when you’re a college prez, you don’t get a paycheck, you get a compensation package) of the presidents at Florida’s 28 state colleges, formerly known as community colleges. What the report showed is there are broad differences in how the various college boards of trustees pay their presidents, and some get extraordinary perks. It also showed Henningsen is one of the lowest paid and most frugally compensated.Henningsen’s salary, for instance, is $200,000. Not bad for these parts, maybe, but compared to his college president sisters and brothers, it’s low on a wage scale that averages $251,000.Add in all his perks, and Henningsen is even a better deal. His total compensation package is $230,100, while the average for the state is $350,403.Of course, some of the college presidents get ridiculous perks and bonuses. The president of Miami-Dade receives a $48,000 housing allowance on top of his $367,000 salary and has a total compensation package of $630,157, the biggest among the 28 schools.At Seminole State College, the school kicks in $122,000 to the president’s retirement fund, a practice that also is carried out at 27 of the colleges — all but CF.While state college presidents get everything from annuities and major medical insurance plans to deferred compensation packages and housing allowances, Henningsen’s list of perks is pretty short. He gets a car allowance of $4,500 a year (the average is $8,248) and he receives 30 days vacation and 12 sick days. He does have one of the better severance packages, which calls for him to be paid “up to” one year’s salary if he leaves CF.What a bargain!THE POWER OF ONE: Mildred Musho has never been one to sit by while something needs to be done.Musho, who is a civic activist in Marion Oaks, wrote a letter to the editor that ran on May 12 lamenting the budget cut Marion Senior Services faces in the wake of the sequester — a cool $78,000. Musho suggested if 23 percent of all Marion Countians — about 78,000 — would each send $1 to Senior Services, the problem would be solved.Well, her idea is working. Senior Services Executive Director Sarah Stroh told me Friday that in response to Musho’s plea, the agency had receive more than $3,800 in $1 donations (some bigger). Wow! The power of one person thinking outside the box.